ABVP sweeps DU student union poll

Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has made a grand comeback in the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) after seven long years as it wins three posts - president, vice-president and secretary - of the four in the panel.

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Mail Today Bureau

New Delhi

September 5, 2010

UPDATED: September 5, 2010 10:54 IST

The Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) made a grand comeback in the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) after seven long years.

The BJP-backed student wing delivered a crushing defeat to its rival National Students Union of India (NSUI) by bagging three posts - president, vice-president and secretary - of the four in the panel.

The Congress-affiliated NSUI could only corner the post of joint secretary, which will be handled by its candidate Akshay Kumar. ABVP's Jitender Choudhury, Priya Dabas and Neetu Dabas will take charge as the president, vice-president and secretary respectively.

The last time the ABVP had registered such an impressive performance was way back in 2002 when its candidates had won the same posts as this year.

The following years - except for 2009 when the election commission disqualified three candidates each from the ABVP and NSUI - saw the DUSU progressively turn into an NSUI bastion.

But all that stands changed now. And the winning party gives credit to its rival for the achievement. Ashutosh Shrivastav, ABVP state secretary, said: "For some years, the officebearers were being elected from the NSUI. Disgruntled with their failure to address problems, the students have once again given us a chance. We also think the eviction of students from hostels in the name of the Games also worked against the NSUI." The defeated party, however, is not losing hope though it is bogged down by its performance.

"The party is in transition. It's normal to experience teething trouble at such a time," Shahnawaz Choudhury, in charge of the NSUI's Delhi unit, said.

The transition that he is referring to is the decision to field democratically elected candidates. The step - a first in the history of DU student union polls - was undertaken as an extension of reforms initiated by Congress scion Rahul Gandhi last year.

The decision was unprecedented as contestants from different student groups are usually nominated. The NSUI also blamed the lack of campaign time for its defeat. "We didn't have enough time to reach out to students. Of the five days designated for campaigning, three were holidays. Nevertheless, I think we need to introspect on our defeat," Choudhury added.

Everything is, however, still not hunky-dory for the elected leaders as the results declared by the DU election commission are provisional. This was done in the wake of complaints that candidates of both parties had used printed material for campaigning.

Printed posters are banned according to the Lyngdoh committee recommendations implemented by the university.

"We need to look into the complaints and the process could take up a month," Gurmeet Singh, DU chief election officer, said.

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